Remember When… Dragon Quest 9 Shocked the World?
Courage and wit have served the Dragon Quest series well, for this month marks Dragon Quest 9’s 10th anniversary in North America. If the Dragon Quest games are as steady and dependable as a veteran knight, Dragon Quest 9: Sentinels of the Starry Skies is the impulsive child who inherited their parent’s potential, but has no desire to be slavish towards the «old ways.»
Dragon Quest 9 is unique and different to a degree that was almost shocking at the time of its development. That was by design: Yuji Horii, the father of Dragon Quest, wanted very much for Westerners to finally pay close attention to the series, which had been venerated in Japan since 1986. But Dragon Quest 9’s construction got so ambitious at times, the team had to walk the entire project back or risk losing its dedicated Japanese audience. Despite the shock and controversy, it managed to capture a respectable number of those coveted Western attention spans. That was thanks to some of the wilder ideas that flew against the notion of RPGs being lonely quests for single players.
Wyrms on the Go
One of Dragon Quest 9’s biggest surprises was coupled with the game’s announcement at a press conference in December 2006: It was in development for the Nintendo DS, not any of the consoles on the market at the time. «The DS version is not a side-story, but a true part of the series,» Horii said.
It was a huge coup at the time. It was almost beyond imagining that the little Nintendo DS could deliver a satisfying mainline Dragon Quest game, a series known for huge maps and grand bestiaries. 2004’s Dragon Quest 8 for the PlayStation 2 had a massive overworld and dozens of hours of content. How could a Nintendo DS game possibly compete?
In retrospect, it’s not surprising Square Enix took Dragon Quest to the Nintendo DS. Nintendo’s dual-screen handheld was a hit as soon as it shot out the gate in 2004, and by the time Square Enix made its announcement, the Nintendo DS Lite was enjoying titanic success.
By contrast, consoles were in a shakier space. The PlayStation 3 was brand-new at the time of the press conference, and the Xbox 360 didn’t have much of a presence in Japan. Japan was also making a clear shift to portable distractions like the DS, the PSP, and feature phones. Consoles were starting to lose some steam.
Besides, even when Square Enix was simply Enix, it was never shy about changing console loyalties whenever it was deemed necessary: Its longtime partnership with Nintendo ended abruptly when it became clear the PlayStation was more lucrative (and easier to develop for) than the Nintendo 64.
Square Enix could theoretically have developed Dragon Quest 9 for the PlayStation 2. Though the console was old news by 2006, its install base was enormous. Somewhere in a parallel universe, there is a Dragon Quest 9 for the PlayStation 2, and it easily sold millions. But here on Earth 33, Square Enix made its choice with the Nintendo DS. Then it continued to shift the boundaries that made—and still make—Dragon Quest games beloved amongst hardcore fans of turn-based JRPGs.
A Westward-Bound Flight of Dragons
For as long as Dragon Quest has existed, Square Enix has tried hard to get the series over with Western audiences. Most of the attempts whiffed, but Yuji Horii’s desire to court the West flared up again when it was time to plan Dragon Quest 9.
The team decided potential Western fans might appreciate a more action-oriented experience. Indeed, a brief look at Dragon Quest 9 brings to mind comparisons with action RPGs like The Legend of Zelda or Secret of Mana: monsters strut around the map within full view of the player, a very unusual feature for a game that was defined by random encounters. Up until that point, Dragon Quest’s monsters lived on one side of the screen, and the player stared them down from the hero’s point-of-view. Dragon Quest 8 started to loosen the rules by showing characters’ models in fights, which was a significant change by itself. Bumping into Dragon Quest’s beasts was a big deal outside of spin-off games like 2006’s Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker.
Touching a monster on Dragon Quest 9’s overworld map still whisks you into a traditional turn-based battle. Dragon Quest veterans should feel at home with the options at hand—fight, run, use magic, or use skills based on your characters’ vocations (a.k.a. jobs)—but early in Dragon Quest 9’s development, it was almost decided we’d get something different. Too different. Dragon Quest 9 nearly was an action RPG, which explains why it resembles other games in the genre at first glance.
«You might think yourself the Dragon Quest master if you played through Dragon Quest VIII. But your past encounters with the series will mean nothing for part IX, which is on its way to the DS,» wrote IGN’s Anoop Gantayat when Square Enix showed the game at its reveal press conference. «Dragon Quest IX takes the series away from traditional menu-based battles to real-time action-RPG gameplay.»
The decision went over so poorly with Japanese Dragon Quest fans that Square Enix reversed it and implemented the much more traditional menu-based battle system that drives the final product.
To paraphrase something former USgamer Editor-in-Chief Jeremy Parish told me when the controversy exploded, «If there’s one thing you don’t do in Japan, it’s screw around with Dragon Quest.»
It’s Dangerous to Go Alone
Despite Square Enix’s walkback, Dragon Quest 9 still feels like it roosts in a weyr apart from the rest of its brood. The «action» implemented into the game to make it more appealing to Westerners is one reason (battle scenes are very dynamic, with tons of sword-slashing and magic-flinging), but Square Enix’s implementation of connectivity is a much bigger reason for Dragon Quest 9’s different scent.
North America was opening up to online multiplayer around the time Dragon Quest 9 entered development, but its myriad options to communicate and adventure alongside friends feels like they were implemented with Dragon Quest’s huge Japanese audience in mind. Up to four players can connect their Nintendo DS handhelds to fight together, a feature that was attractive in an age where Japanese schoolkids gathered to battle behemoths in 2005’s Monster Hunter Freedom for the PSP.
When Dragon Quest 9 launched in North America, Nintendo published a series of «Iwata Asks» YouTube interviews wherein the former President of Nintendo, Satoru Iwata, talks to Yuji Horii and Dragon Quest 9 producer, Ryutaro Ichimura, about their additional reasons for implementing so many multiplayer options for the game. Ichimura and Horii remark how Dragon Quest fans have been exchanging tips and story tidbits via word-of-mouth since the series’ conception, so a more direct connection felt like a natural step to take.
And, to Square Enix’s credit, that step lended Dragon Quest 9 its own identity. People enjoyed playing together, but Dragon Quest 9 really shone because of Patty’s Pub. Patty’s Pub is a virtual watering holethat lets players «gather» heroes when their Dragon Quest 9-loaded Nintendo DS passes another player who also has a Dragon Quest 9-loaded Nintendo DS. This lets fans exchange greetings, but more importantly, it lets them exchange treasure maps filled with riches and danger.
The most popular maps pit players against legacy Dragon Quest bosses like Baramos from Dragon Quest 3 and Dhoulmagus from Dragon Quest 8.
Not long after Dragon Quest 9’s release, a real Patty’s Pub opened in Japan’s Akihabara district, which let fans trade maps with ease. Western fans never got a café of their own, but Dragon Quest 9 has still managed to breed fanatical treasure map hunters. I distinctly remember taking Dragon Quest 9 to Otakon 2010 and feeling amazement at how many people visited my pub. It felt good to know there were so many fellow fans out there, and I loved receiving maps from them.
Dragon Quest 9’s legacy of meeting friends and sharing digital gifts lived on in the StreetPass function for the Nintendo 3DS. Which, uh, is currently in need of its own legacy, because the Nintendo 3DS is a walking ghost and the Switch doesn’t have a notable replacement. Someday.
At the time, my Otakon 2010 experience with Patty’s Pub made me hope that Dragon Quest 9 was actually successful at bringing Western fans to the series.
By January 2011, Dragon Quest 9 sold 1.01 million copies in Europe and the United States. Not exactly Pokemon numbers, but gangbusters next to Western sales for earlier Dragon Quest titles. It was certainly enough for Square Enix to keep trying to entice us.
Those efforts continue today: Dragon Quest 11: Echoes of an Elusive Age made its way Westward in 2018. There’s no doubt some of the fans who purchased it were guided to the series through Dragon Quest 9. Dragon Quest’s Western audience is real, it’s patient, and it’s voracious. Final Fantasy will probably always be the first series that comes to mind when Westerners think «JPRG,» but for a time at the very start of the ’10s, JRPGs were all about treasure maps, legacy boss battles, and populating your very own pub with like-minded friends.
Header image source: Video Game Art & Tidbits
Walkthrough — Dragon Quest IX Wiki Guide
Dragon Quest IX Wiki Guide
By knoteach, Sebastian Mejia, IGN-GameGuides, +472 more
updated
Dragon Quest IX Walkthrough
Welcome to the walkthrough section of our Dragon Quest IX guide.
This section is the true meat of our guide, because it holds your hand through the entire main quest of Dragon Quest IX, from beginning to end. Our walkthrough is exhaustively detailed, so you should never find yourself lost, or confused as to how to proceed. The walkthrough is also split up into many different sections, so that you can quickly jump to precisely where you need to be at any given time. Because of the fact that the names of each section are made-up by the author of this guide, we’ve included the location or locations each section of the guide takes place in, so you can quickly pinpoint where you can find the help you need. And, of course, our walkthrough is presented completely chronologically, so should you choose to follow the walkthrough from beginning to end, you should be able to do so easily and seamlessly.
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There are a few things to keep in mind before scrolling down to find the link you seek. The first thing to keep in mind is that this walkthrough only covers Dragon Quest IX’s main quest.
Anything that’s optional, including the game’s official side quests, are covered extensively in the Side Quests section of this guide . Monsters, items and equipment found in a specific area are discussed at the outset of each section of the walkthrough, so more detailed information on any of that can be found in the Items & Equipment and Monsters sections of our guide. And when reading the walkthrough itself, please keep in mind that any items or pieces of equipment mentioned as coming out of drawers, hutches, barrels, bottles, jars and more may differ for you (or not be there at all), since these items, unlike those found in treasure chests, are randomly-generated.
So now, without further ado… our walkthrough.
Please keep in mind that this walkthrough is currently a work in progress, and isn’t yet complete. Thank you.
Adventuring in Angel Falls
- Introduction
- Introduction Part 2
- Welcome to the Protectorate
- Welcome to the Protectorate Part 2
- Stuck in Angel Falls
- Stuck in Angel Falls Part 2
- The Hexagon
- The Hexagon Part 2
- Mysterious Patty
- Mysterious Patty Part 2
Saving Stornway
- A Mechanical Failure
- A Mechanical Failure Part 2
- A Mechanical Failure Part 3
- An Audience With King Schott
- An Audience With King Schott Part 2
- Vanquish the Wight Knight
- Vanquish the Wight Knight Part 2
- Lore Seekers
- Lore Seekers Part 2
- Doomingale Forest and Brigadoom
- Doomingale Forest and Brigadoom Part 2
- Doomingale Forest and Brigadoom Part 3
A Mysterious Curse
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- Coffins in Coffinwell
- Coffins in Coffinwell Part 2
- Curse-Chasing
- Curse-Chasing Part 2
- All’s Well That Ends Well
- All’s Well That Ends Well Part 2
- Repair and Rejoin
- Repair and Rejoin Part 2
The Isolated Island
- Fish Without Fishing
- Fish Without Fishing Part 2
- Jona and the Mayor
- Jona and the Mayor Part 2
- Where’s Abbot Jack?
- Where’s Abbot Jack? Part 2
- Tackling the Tower
- Tackling the Tower Part 2
A Boat of Our Own
- An Overseas Voyage
- An Overseas Voyage Part 2
- The Missing Mason
- The Missing Mason Part 2
- The Missing Mason Part 3
- Flying Off the Handle
- Flying Off the Handle Part 2
- Flying Off the Handle Part 3
- Rescuing the Girl
- Rescuing the Girl — Part 2
- Rescuing the Girl Part 3
- Setting Sail
The Self-Absorbed Queen
- A Town in the Desert
- A Town in the Desert Part 2
- A Mutated Lizard
- A Mutated Lizard Part 2
- A Mutated Lizard Part 3
Arctic Adventuring
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- Mysteries in the Snow
- Mysteries in the Snow Part 2
- Kicking It (in the) Old-School
- Kicking It (in the) Old-School Part 2
- Loose Ends
Up Next: Introduction
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Ten Tips for Mastering Dragon Quest IX
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Introduction
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In This Wiki Guide
Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies
Level-5
Rating
ESRB: Everyone 10+
Platforms
Nintendo DS
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts — Official Teaser Trailer
Check out the teaser trailer for Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, arriving in theaters on June 9, 2023.
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts introduces the Maximals, Predacons, and Terrorcons to the existing battle on earth between Autobots and Decepticons. The upcoming movie is directed by Steven Caple Jr. and stars Anthony Ramos, Dominique Fishback, Tobe Nwigwe, Peter Cullen, Ron Perlman, Peter Dinklage, Michelle Yeoh, Liza Koshy, John DiMaggio, David Sobolov, Michaela Jaé Rodriguez, Pete Davidson, and Cristo Fernández.
All New Pokemon in Scarlet and Violet
See every New Pokemon in Scarlet and Violet along with their Pokedex entries. This includes ALL the new Starter Pokemon, the new Legendaries, and the new Paradox Pokemon, so proceed with caution.Learn even more about Pokemon Scarlet and Violet with our guide and walkthrough: https://www.ign.com/wikis/pokemon-scarlet-violet
7 Things to Do First — Pokémon Scarlet and Violet
Pokemon Scarlet & Violet gives you a whole new region to explore, and as soon as you step outside, all of Paldea is your Cloyster.
But, there are definitely a few things you should consider — especially if you want to make exploring the most rewarding and fun it can be. Here’s everything you need to do first in Pokemon Scarlet/Violet with plenty of tips to help you along (without spoiling the whole game).For more Pokemon S/V tips, check out our full guide on IGN!https://www.ign.com/wikis/pokemon-scarlet-violet
7 good museum quests for children — Poster-Exhibitions
January 26, 2022
Katerina Antonova
January 26, 2022
The trend for everything for children and games has captured the large state museums of Moscow. We found 7 wonderful quests organized by museums, not third-party companies, and were amazed at their diversity: space and music, painting and wildlife, urbanism and the noble world — literally everything can become a topic for an exciting journey through the museum halls.
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Space Museum
Mira, 111
«Space crew». family quest
Until June 1, you can complete a family quest organized by three organizations related to space at once: the Museum of Cosmonautics, VDNKh and Roskosmos.
Designed for three age groups (children aged 5–7, 8–9 and 10–12), it involves participants visiting three museums with their parents: the Museum of Cosmonautics, the Buran Interactive Museum Complex, and the Cosmonautics and aviation» at VDNKh. And along the way, they will learn how astronauts prepare for flights, why spaceships return to Earth, and much more interesting things. In parallel, there will be a competition for the best emblem of the space crew, the winners of which will be able to communicate with astronauts on the International Space Station. Go to Quest More about the museum
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Pushkin Museum
Volkhonka, 12
«Dragon Treasures». Excursion-quest
Pushkin Museum im. A.S. Pushkin, among other game excursions, offers such a quest: together with a guide, children will wander through several halls of the museum and look for traces of the existence of dragons in works of art. They will find a nymph, a Minotaur, a Triton, a griffin and other fabulous creatures.
And, of course, they will get acquainted with the heroes who have always and at all times defeated monsters. The quest is designed for students in grades 1-3. Go to Quest More about the museum
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Darwin Museum
Vavilova, 57
«Let’s hurry to help the bear cub Umka!». A fairy tale or a quest tour
The Darwin Museum organized a quest tour for children aged 5–7 years around its halls based on the plot of Umka, who got lost, sailed away alone on an ice floe and now cannot return to his mother without the help of the quest participants. The tour lasts an hour and a half, and after it you can drink tea and cookies, provided that you bring all this with you. Go to Quest
More about the museum
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Museum of Moscow
Zubovsky Boulevard, 2
Mysteries of Old Moscow. Just a quest
The Museum of Moscow organized this quest for the exhibition «History of Moscow for Children and Adults» and invites participants to visit the medieval capital to find out how the Vyatichi Slavs lived, what toys their children played with and how their houses were arranged.
During the passage of the quest (and this is about an hour and fifteen), participants will learn a lot of facts and get acquainted with a large number of things from such areas of the life of citizens as construction, trade, crafts and learning. Go to Quest More about the museum
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Pushkin Museum
Prechistenka, 12/2
«Mysteries of the Old House». Travel-quest for the whole family
The Pushkin Literary Museum has created a quest for its permanent exhibition dedicated to the life of the nobility in Russia. Therefore, at different stages of the game, participants will study and learn some facts from the life of our privileged ancestors: they will learn how to choose a suit suitable for the occasion, make a dinner party menu, and even create their own family coat of arms. Go to Quest
More about the museum
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Tretyakov Gallery
Lavrushinsky per., 10
Oil on Canvas, or Ordinary Miracle of Art. Art quest
The Tretyakov Gallery has come up with and is running a quest for younger students, those who are just beginning to get acquainted with the great Russian painting.
Therefore, the attention of the participants of this game hour and a half excursion will be focused on the most important characters of the 18th and 19th centuries: Karl Bryullov, Ivan Shishkin and Viktor Vasnetsov. Especially for the quest, a guidebook has been released, the main characters of which, Oil Paint and Canvas, will help children learn to look at paintings in detail and solve the riddles hidden there. Go to Quest More about the museum
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Museum of Music
Fadeeva, 4
«Mysterious Classics». Musical riddles at the Museum of Music
The whole hour-long quest for children over 6 years old is dedicated to finding the missing Bravo agent and, in parallel, continuing the investigation he started, in order to complete it, you need to solve puzzles, solve riddles, find clues and perform musical tasks related to famous composers, instruments and works of classical music . Go to Quest
More about the museum
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Escape rooms0002 Conducted a little investigation — rummaged through the memories and the Internet, and found out when the quests appeared. Bet you don’t know the right answer? Years 20, 30, 50? Nope. Much more. At least for a couple of thousand years… We tell and explain in detail!
12 Hercules quests
It only seems that the quests come from the 20th century. In fact, they are much older. So much so that the word itself appeared in Latin. Then quests were called stories about the exploits of heroes. Yes, yes, all the exploits of Hercules (or, for those who prefer Latin — Hercules) are real quests! And in the first retellings they were called that.
As you can see, even the value has not changed much. This is still a story about people who go through many trials and solve the most difficult tasks in order to achieve some goal. So about you and me, too, in a few hundred years, myths and legends can be composed.
Hmm, would you like to complete a similar quest? And what type is it: escape, performance or action?
Quests also existed in the Middle Ages.
The truth was much bigger. What are the Crusades worth alone. They can probably be called the biggest quests in the world. Such a number of players will not even fit on Zhelezyaki.
In the 19th century, another type of quest appeared: notes with secret codes were hidden around the city, from which they recognized the place with the next artifact. The team that collected the most codes during the game won. This prototype of modern quests in 2002 grew into a new entertainment — geocaching. Now tips are left on websites, and searches can be conducted all over the world.
Text era
But in the 20th century, computer games appeared, which are considered the progenitors of modern escapes and performances. The 70s became the era of text-based computer games. True, for them it was necessary to connect the imagination to the maximum. A description of the situation, a task and an input line appeared on the screen, where the player wrote what his character would do.
For example, in a game you need to neutralize a dragon. And for this you need to euthanize him. Then the hero needs to complete several tasks: find sleeping pills, figure out how to use it, get close to the dragon…
In general, it will take incredible imagination and a lot of free time to complete one game. Thankfully there were very few of them. So it’s not surprising that already in the 80s they came up with a new kind of quests …
Graphic breakthrough
Incredible visualization, mind-blowing puzzles, amazing gameplay. So in the 80s they described «Mystery House» — the first game that had computer graphics. You could become the hero of the famous detective Agatha Christie and solve the crime yourself. And the clues could be found not only in the text, but also in the pictures!
Now it seems that the graphics of those times are similar to the attempts of a 3-year-old child to draw something.
But at the time it was a real breakthrough. The players finally saw the reality of the quest. Before VR, of course, it was still far away, but immersion into another world happened. Gamers liked Mystery House so much that they began to learn how to make graphic games themselves.
Escape the room
The usual escape the room format appeared only in the 2000s. When games like Viridian Room came out, where you had to find all the clues and solve puzzles in order to open the door and leave the room. Or get into the next one. In one of these games there were 13 rooms with their own tasks. Sometimes questers spent more than one day on the passage.
By the middle of the 2000s, the idea of quests was almost ready. It remains only to transfer it to reality.
Bring back my 2007: how the first quest rooms appeared
Yes, the first quests appeared in this year. Another reason for nostalgia. And if everything is clear with the year, then there is a lot of confusion with the place.
Japan, China, Romania, Hungary, the Netherlands and even France with their «Fort Boyard» are fighting for the title of the first country of quests. We, for example, prefer the option with Japan. After all, there is such a-and-th romantic story …
There is a legend that the first quest in reality was created by the Japanese Takao Kato. Takao fell in love with a girl and their feelings were mutual. But more than a young man, she loved computer quests. And spent almost all the time with them. Takao decided that something had to be done about it. And he didn’t think of anything better than to transfer her favorite game to reality. Agree, this is the perfect way to win the heart of a gamer. If you want to follow the example of romantic Takao and surprise your other half, don’t forget to read our dating tips in Quest here /
Not only did Takao’s lover like this idea, but a bunch of Japanese people did too. Yes, so much so that I had to build a few more rooms! True, there is another version of the story with Takao — much simpler.
Rumor has it that a smart Japanese just realized in time how to earn money. I rented a large playground, came up with tasks and began to invite people to take tests and compete in solving puzzles in teams … Boring 🙁
The history of Russian quest games
In Russia, their history began in 2013. The first quests were opened by the Claustrophobia team. Almost immediately after the first trip to Budapest, where quests were so popular that tourists began to come just for the game.
It became clear that this is love. Love for quests in reality. And it’s time to create our own in Russia. As is clear today — here they have taken root no worse.
The debut projects were two escapes, which the players remembered under the names «Soviet Apartment» and «Psychiatric Hospital». In the «Soviet apartment» in an hour it was necessary to have time to destroy all the documents from the friend’s apartment and save him and himself from execution.
And in the «Psychiatric Hospital» — to investigate and find out what is happening in this mysterious place where people constantly disappear. In just a couple of months, these escapes shot so much that games had to be booked a month in advance!
Scare me
By 2014, there were few puzzles and riddles for questers. So there were quests with actors — performances. The first in Russia was the «Collector». Players fell into the basement of a cannibal maniac and had to find a way to avoid a terrible death in an hour. Variable plot, crazy interior, real smells of meat and blood, professional actors. This quest was simply doomed to become a cult. And so it happened. Similar games began to appear throughout the country. If you didn’t manage to try one of them before, fix it soon. But first read instruction to figure out what to expect from the first quest with the actors.
Surprisingly, performances are actually older than escapes.
